$134M approved for 10 BP-funded oil spill recovery projects

NEW ORLEANS - A panel has approved using $134 million provided by BP PLC on 10 projects to help the Gulf of Mexico recover from the company's catastrophic 2010 offshore oil spill.

A trustee council made up of state and federal officials overseeing ecological restoration from the oil spill Wednesday approved the distribution of the money.

About $126 million will go to ecological projects for sea turtles, fish, vegetation and birds and $8 million on enhancing recreational uses.

In 2011, in anticipation of future restoration costs meted out through the courts, BP offered to spend $1 billion to spur the recovery of the Gulf. BP is expected to spend billions of dollars more on restoration.

So far, with these new projects included, about $832 million of the $1 billion has been awarded.